The Allenton Hippo
In March 1895, workmen digging a well for drinking water in the yard of the Crown Inn at Allenton, then a country hamlet 3 miles south of Derby, found some large bones. They also found ‘a strong unpleasant smell’ and so the well was abandoned. The bones were shown to two local geologists HH Arnold Bemrose and R M Deeley who were so excited by them that they organised a scientific excavation to see what else could be found.
Over three days they unearthed more remains, and a total of 127 bones and fragments were found, about 3 metres below the surface. Two of the bones belonged to an elephant and a rhinoceros. The rest formed an incomplete skeleton of a hippopotamus. Most of the bones belonged to one young adult hippopotamus. After the bone fragments were pieced together they made about 50 complete or nearly complete bones of one young adult hippo. Because the bones were relatively undisturbed it was deduced that the hippo died where it was found!
